


The Maze

by Yatorihell



Series: In The Darkness [45]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, ノラガミ | Noragami
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-28
Updated: 2018-05-28
Packaged: 2019-05-15 01:29:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,194
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14781053
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yatorihell/pseuds/Yatorihell
Summary: The final task is here. What will the champions face?Happy birthday Ink (dr-gothtasic.tumblr)!





	The Maze

**Author's Note:**

> I literally just finished this so there's no beta corrections yet sorry.

The final challenge – the Maze – looked much less inviting than any of the previous tasks. Thick shrubs ten-foot-high would surely blot out the twilight sky once the champions entered, and for a moment Yato wondered why this challenge took place on a dark summer night.

Streamers of honey gold and deep emerald fluttered in the stands, accompanied by the deep burgundy of Durmstrang and pastel blue of Beauxbatons flags.

Only the fourth and fifth year students – and the visiting schools – were permitted to spectate this challenge, much to Yato's relief as he felt the tension in his chest grow with every cheerful note of the marching band.

Beside him Suzuha craned his neck at the Hogwarts stands, presumably looking for Yukine before turning away in disappointment when he failed to spot him in the crowd. Mananbu and Nana, however, only had their respective headteachers to encourage them.

Manabu looked a little worse for wear considering what had happened in the second task, but nonetheless determined when Madame Kinuha air-kissed his cheeks. Nana, on the other hand, had her face set in a hard scowl, barely reacting when Master Okuninushi placed a hand on her head before going back to the stands.

Every teacher in the school had come to watch this historic moment, packed into the lower stands. Even Rabou, who normally confined himself to the office in the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom, stood to the side lines.

Amongst the sea of faces Yato spotted Bishamon, Hiyori and Kazuma squashed onto one of the uppermost pews of the wooden stalls that formed a semi-circle around the maze. He focused on them to calm himself, watching their mouths move but not hearing a word.

For some reason Bishamon’s hair had green streaks in it, and when she caught Yato’s eye she gave him a firm nod that suggested a good luck wish.

Yato smiled and turned back to the entrance of the maze. Thick fog seeped through the knotted hedgerow branches and snaked out into the arena like ghosts which curled around his feet. He knew that beyond the filmy veil of mist was the victors prize.

A shoulder lightly brushed against his side, fingertips lightly curled around his own.

Yato turned his head. Hiyori was looking at him with those same worried eyes she had whenever he tried to do something stupid, or whenever she knew something bad was going to happen.

Even with no words, he knew she was silently begging him not to go.

“I got you this,” Hiyori said quietly after a pause.

Yato watched as she pulled a braid of cotton entwined with charms from her pocket.

“I put a protection spell on it, so you’ll be safe.” Hiyori pressed it into his hand and drew to pull away, but Yato stopped her.

Hiyori looked at him in confusion as he took her hand in both of his and gently curled her fingers back around the bracelet.

“You know that’s not allowed, Hiyori,” he said softly.

Yato brought Hiyori’s hand to his lips, placing a ghost of a kiss on her knuckles. “I don’t need a good luck charm as long as I have you.”

Hiyori would’ve blushed if she hadn’t been so worried, her heart hammering against her chest for another reason entirely.

“It doesn’t matter if you win!” Hiyori said. “Just come back safe.”

Releasing her hand with a soft squeeze, Yato gave her a confident smile to ease her worries.

“I will.”

His eyes lingered on Hiyori as she made her way back to the upper stands before his eyes fell on Professor Tenjin who had stepped forward.

Professor Tenjin briefly tapped his wand to his throat and uttered a spell. His voice was amplified when he began speaking, loud enough for the crowd to hear as their cheers tapered down to soft chatter.

“The third and final task of the Triwizard Tournament is about to begin!”

The crowd roared in approval briefly before falling into another lull of silence when the headmaster raised his hand.

“Earlier today the Triwizard Cup was hidden deep within the maze. Now, as Yato and Suzuha –,” Cheers from Hogwarts rang out at their names. Yato felt his heart would explode from anxiety. “– are tied for first position, they will be the first to enter the maze. Followed by Nana, and then Manabu.”

Cheers from Beauxbatons, coupled with the roar of Durmstrang students who stamped their feet and pumped their fists, nearly drowned out Professor Tenjin’s voice.

“The first person to touch the cup will be the winner!”

Yato looked over at Suzuha. He was still restlessly scanning the crowd, worrying his lip with little attention to what was being said. His hands wrung nervously, and Yato noticed that the bracelet had yet to be clasped on his wrist.

He didn't expect Yukine to be late for this.

“If at any point a contestant wishes to withdraw from the task, he or she need only send up red sparks with their wands.”

Yato’s eyes snapped back to Professor Tenjin. A fleeting fancy of surrendering the competition crossed Yato’s mind before he realised how cowardly he would look. He would get that cup if it was the last thing he would do.

“Contestants! Gather around.”

The four champions drew around Professor Tenjin, flanked by both Madame Kinuha and Master Okuninushi. Their faces were much graver than the champions who had no idea what they were facing.

“ln the maze, you'll find no dragons or creatures of the deep. lnstead, you'll face something even more challenging.” Professor Tenjin looked at each of them in turn, serious eyes under a knitted brow.

"Find the cup if you can but be careful. You might just lose yourself along the way."

Yato jolted. Those words – Nora’s _exact_ words – left Professor Tenjin’s lips. For a moment, Yato feared that the person who had him entered in this competition was doing laying a trap before his very eyes.

Their eyes caught each other, and, without another word, Professor Tenjin turned back to face the crowd with open arms.

“Champions, prepare yourselves!”

There was no time to think. Each champion walked back to their own entrance, ready to face the final challenge with their wands in hand.

Yato, who had started to wonder if his own Professor was behind his ordeal, looked back at the stands. The crowd seemed to blur, leaving him unable to find a familiar, comforting face in the sea of colour.

He glanced at Suzuha once again, and this time he noticed. Suzuha gave Yato a tight smile and nodded.

A canon blast signalled the commencement, and both Yato and Suzuha entered the maze.

With slow steps Yato glanced back one last time, hoping he would catch sight of Yukine arriving just in time to see them off.

Instead, the hedgerow overgrew and left him sealed in blanketed silence.

Tall hedges blocked out most of the light, casting long shadows over the maze punctuated by brief moonlight which gave the mist a silver hue.

Yato moved carefully, looking around every turn before stepping forward. He tried to rationalise his movements, telling himself that the cup would be in the centre of the maze, and trying to keep himself moving forward rather than in circles.

It seemed to be all for nought as every path looked the same, leaving Yato more disorientated with every turn he took. It seemed Nora’s and Professor Tenjin’s warning were alike for the same reason: anyone could get lost in this maze.

Yato couldn’t see any of his counterparts, but the slightest noise and rustle of leaves had him spin around, wand raised to face an enemy that wasn’t there.

What seemed like hours passed, and just when he started to think that there were no beasts in this maze – that he had simply overthought Nora’s empty threat – a scream pierced the air.

Yato’s heart stopped. _Who was that?_

It seemed like an eternity before Yato was able to move again, though he found himself moving in the direction of the cry.

His head screamed at him not to go towards the sound, but the pit of his stomach told him that he needed to help, even if it was too late. Yato stopped short when he reached the corner, the unmistakable sound of footsteps telling him that someone – or some _thing_ – was coming.

Yato moved closer to the hedge and held his breath, waiting for the creature to reveal itself until it stopped moving altogether. His ears strained to detect any movement before he cautiously looked around the intersection.

Rather than a beast or Minotaur stood Nana, her short hair tousled and form-fitting clothes even more so. Even though her back was turned, for some reason, Yato knew it was better to hide than approach her.

Yato moved to go back once more, pressed into the hedges, but his shoulder brushed against leafy twigs which gave loud snaps.

Nana’s snapped around at the sound, red-tipped wand raised with a snarl set on her face. Yato’s heart hammered, not hearing his short pants when he was put at Nana’s mercy, wand nearly touching his throat.

Yato’s eyes were blown wide, waiting for to be struck down, but Nana’s eyes – clouded like the mist that swirled at their feet – looked right through Yato.

Whatever spell set on the tip of her wand didn’t find its mark. Instead, it faded, and the wand dropped back to Nana’s side. She didn’t say a word.

Yato watched in terrified bewilderment as Nana turned once more and walked straight ahead until her figure became little more than a grey smudge in the distance.

Her movement was almost mechanical as she took a sharp turn at the end of the passage, as if directed by some unseen power to wander the maze and pick her opponents off one by one before they could reach the cup.

With her eyes clouded by magic, Yato wondered if she could see – or know what she was doing – at all.

Yato looked in the direction Nana had come from, a prickle going up on the back of his neck.

_She didn’t…_

His fear was confirmed when he quickly scanned the aisles around him. His paces quickened with short breaths when he ran to the collapsed figure, unconscious and being consumed by a different creature from what Yato had feared.

Blanketed in an earthy embrace, roots wove around their entire body in a tight vice. Slivers of blue peaked out from the mud, and Yato muttered a curse under his breath realising that it was Manabu vanishing into the hedgerow.

His hands tore at the roots but they were replaced by new ones just as quickly as Yato could remove them. Within seconds Manabu had been dragged into the undergrowth.

Yato swore under his breath again, looking around desperately. With no choice, he scrambled to his feet and pointed his wand at the sky.

“ _Periculum!_ ”

Red sparks erupted from Yato’s wand and showered into the dark sky, dissipating seconds later. Yato shuffled back towards the hedge, but any sign of Manabu had vanished.

Yato cursed under his breath again, wand tightening in his grip. _Are they actually trying to kill us?_

With nothing to be done, Yato cautiously moved to the centre of the path, eyes flicking to the ground occasionally in case a stray root should snag his foot and deliver his to a similar fate.

Yato moved quickly and quietly, wand raised high expecting to come face to face with an enemy despite there being no sign of one in the hours he had roamed the maze.

Turn after turn resulted in dead ends and familiar hedgerows – not that Yato could tell the difference. For all he knew he was standing in the same spot where he started.

Suzuha’s voice reached Yato. He paused. The strains of his voice were rising in pitch until they became a yell which was joined by another voice, one which spat out a curse that had Yato’s blood run cold.

“ _Crucio!_ ”

The unmistakeable sound of Suzuha’s scream had Yato sprinting through the maze blindly, following the unending pleas until he rounded a corner and found him. Or rather, them.

Nana’s wand was aimed at Suzuha’s head, her small but lithe body somehow managing to pin down Suzuha’s struggling form.

Yato’s breath hitched when her head snapped up to look at him. Her eyes, pale like clouds, bore into him, and her teeth bared in a feral snarl as she sent a bolt skimming over Yato’s head.

It was enough of a distraction for Suzuha to throw Nana off and kick himself away until he was behind Yato. Nana growled and took a step forward.

Yato raised his wand with both hands. He was surprised when she seemed to hesitate but brushed it aside when she resumed her purposeful stride.

“What the hell’s wrong with her?” Suzuha hissed from somewhere behind Yato, now on his feet and wand in hand.

Yato didn’t have time to answer before a curse was flung at them, barely deflecting it in time. Another bolt of red came their way, scorching a hole in the hedge upon deflection. Then another. And another.

Yato cursed under his breath, hardly able to attack as they were driven back. Suzuha’s wand movements had grown increasingly frantic, sending any spell, charm or curse which came to mind as they fought against Nana.

With a thrust and loud grunt, Suzuha gave a violent slash of his wand.

Blue light spat out of the tip of his wand and hit Nana square in the chest, sending her sprawling backwards with a sharp grunt on impact with the ground.

Yato rushed forward and kicked Nana’s wand out of her hand, not that it was needed as she lay motionless, milky eyes half-lidded in stupor.

Yato kept his eyes on her form, wand tight in his hand in case she should wake. He stepped back cautiously until he was level with Suzuha.

“Are you…” Yato started, but he could sense that Suzuha wasn’t finished with this duel. Yato looked at him.

Suzuha’s chest heaved with each pant of breath, mouth twisted into a furious growl that Yato had never seen before as he pushed past Yato towards Nana. His wand twitched in his hand.

“Suzuha, no!”

Yato wrenched Suzuha back by his arm, stumbling forward to put himself between the curse on the tip of Suzuha’s wand and Nana with his arms outstretched. “She’s bewitched!”

Suzuha shoved Yato away with a growl but did not raise his wand again.

Yato lowered his arms slowly, dragging his eyes away from Suzuha’s heated glare to look at Nana’s unconscious form. Everyone was changing. But Nana… she was possessed by something else entirely.

In this moment, Yato realised they were the only three champions left. Nana – unconscious of her self and actions –, and Suzuha, who’s taunt expression told him that dark forces were toying with them.

Maybe losing yourself meant losing your _self_.

Something out of the corner of his eye distracted Yato from this thought at the same time as Suzuha. Something glittering in with a faint blue-y silver light, but unmistakably the same goblet which had spat out their names and sealed their fate in the tournament.

Yato and Suzuha looked at each other for a painstakingly drawn out moment, each one thinking the same thing.

 _‘Run’_.

Neck and neck as they sprinted closer to the cup. Hands pushed and snatched at each other’s backs, feet desperately trying to outpace the others or trip them entirely.

That’s when the maze awoke.

From beneath their feet – as if they had woken the dead – long, spindly roots reached out to the boys as they fought their way forward.

Roots lashed at their feet and whipped their bodies, leaving them to run blindly towards the cup.

The dull yellow of Suzuha’s jersey fell out of Yato’s vision, accompanied by a heavy thud and grunts which turned to sharp cries that grew more distant as Yato ran.

Yato ran blindly, his mind focused on the cup and the cup alone, until one cry cut through his desire.

“Yato!”

He skidded to a halt, nearly falling over himself as he snapped back to see at Suzuha.

The roots have given up their pursuit, lacing themselves around Suzuha body. He kicked and clawed at the dense vines that wove around his limbs and torso before they lay claim to his neck, leaving his hoarse cries choked.

Suzuha scrambled for his wand which had fallen merely inches from his outstretched hand, growing further and further away as the roots seized their prize, drawing Suzuha back into the same thicket that had claimed Manabu.

“Yato! Yato, PLEASE!”

Eyes wide with unadulterated terror, Suzuha’s body was all but immobile, the hard scrapes of dirt against his cheek telling him that he would most likely be dead by morning if he didn’t escape. All he could do was plead to Yato who had taken a different aura, watching him being constricted by roots that seemed to have no interest in him.

Yato tore his eyes away, finding them light on his prize. The cup shone with a coaxing light. It was close; tantalisingly close.

Yato felt detached – apathetic, even – of Suzuha’s screams. He could just leave him… who would know?

He could have eternal glory…

No.

“ _Reducto!_ ”

The blast from Yato’s wand sent the roots withering away from Suzuha’s body. He thrashed and tore himself free before new roots could trap him again.

Yato hauled Suzuha up by his shirt collar and started running, nails digging into his skin painfully as they stumbled over clumps of mud and their own feet, and through vines that lashed their faces, trying to feebly catch onto their prey.

Then the cup was there, glittering and glorious, inviting the touch of its new Champion. But who?

Yato’s eyes snapped between Suzuha and the roots which snaked across the ground, seeking out their prey. Suzuha looked equally as terrified when their eyes met, the maze fast closing in on them.

“Take it!” Suzuha shouted over the din of snapping branches and the rush of wind, “You saved me! _Take it!_ ”

Yato wore a longing expression. The cup glistened, beckoning him to claim glory for himself with a single touch.

He fantasized about what would await him: the roar of the crowd, holding the trophy aloft, and Hiyori…

Whatever image he was about conjure up was replaced by Suzuha’s desperate face. Yato was never meant to be here. Why should he steal this moment from Suzuha?

“Take it!” Yato shouted.

He turned his back on the cup, wand raised in defence at the wall of foliage bearing down on them.

Yato braced himself for the full force that was about to hit him.

Before he knew what was happening, Suzuha grabbed Yato’s hand and pressed it to the glass.

In an instant the world spun away. The hedges collided against each other with violent snaps which sent a gust of wind through their leaves.

With its prey gone, the maze was silent once more.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm going on hiatus cos some stuffs happened in life and I'd like to have a few chapters ready to go before I try get back on a regular schedule.


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